


A Sure Grip

by devon380black (kryptonian17)



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Muggle, Alternate Universe - Teachers, Dramionelove Mini Fest 2017, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-11
Updated: 2018-01-11
Packaged: 2019-03-03 12:03:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13340874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kryptonian17/pseuds/devon380black
Summary: Hermione Granger is a part-time teacher seeking tenure when something challenges her dream.





	A Sure Grip

**Title:** A Sure Grip  
**Author:** devon380black on livejournal  
**Prompt #:** 65\. Muggleverse. Their monthly train tickets require they ride next to each other every day to work, coming and going. They start noticing things they like and dislike about the other person.  
**Rating:** Teen.  
**Summary:** Hermione Granger is a part-time teacher seeking tenure when something challenges her dream.  
**Warnings:** None.  
**Author's Notes:** The school is fictional. I am not familiar with UK schools so I wrote from what I knew instead.  
**Disclaimer: "Harry Potter" is the property of J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros. This fanfiction was written entirely for fun, not for profit, and no copyright infringement is intended.**

 

Hermione Granger was looking forward to the beginning of classes. She had a feeling that her dream of becoming a full-time teacher was going to be fulfilled. Mrs. Longbottom had informed the school that she would be taking a sabbatical from teaching to focus on her pregnancy.

By Hermione's calculations, Mrs. Longbottom would have had her baby by now. She was happy for Mrs. Longbottom and she was excited because the school would be looking for someone to fill the science teacher's shoes for a whole school year.

This was her chance. Her opportunity to prove herself to the Board of Directors.

A week ago, she received a faculty meeting notice in her inbox. This was it! She couldn't help but do a little celebratory dance when she read the message.

-

Hair tightly pulled back with a ribbon, shoes polished, dress impeccable, Hermione was glowing as she stepped through the massive gates of H. Ogwarts Institute. She smiled and waved at her former students. And said hello to some new ones.

By lunchtime, she had amassed a pile of assessment papers on her desk. After eating her lunch, she checked her teeth and practiced her smiles for the faculty meeting.

-

_Drats!_

-

_No._

-

_This cannot be happening!_

-

Hermione Granger was not going to teach Mrs. Longbottom's classes. It would be a new teacher. A new substitute teacher. Someone whom the higher-ups had assigned themselves.

A certain Mr. Malfoy.

_Why does that name sound familiar?_

-

Hermione waved goodbye to her students. The first day of school was over. She shouldered her bag and reflected on her day. She managed to end up on the train platform without accident despite the internal debates going on in her head.

Hermione looked up and caught sight of someone watching her.

Tall, fair-haired, Mr. Malfoy.

She felt the now familiar irritation rise up inside. She could feel the slow contraction of her facial muscles. _Ugh! This man!_

Mr. Malfoy smiled at her. Hermione managed to nod in acknowledgement. She would have preferred that he not approach her but he did. His steps were slow but sure, stepping around other train patrons and saying hello to those who looked at him in curiousity.

"Hello. I don't believe I've introduced myself to you. You're the other science teacher, correct?"

Still mute, Hermione nodded again. Her jaws were locking from the effort it took not to yell out her frustration. Her dream was so close. So close! And now it was taken away by the presence of this man. She wanted him to leave her alone but he was deadset on being chummy with his co-league.

"I am Draco Malfoy. And you must be Miss Hermione Granger",he held out his hand.

She quirked an eyebrow and gave a quick limp shake of his hand.

Malfoy wasn't put off by her less than enthusiastic response. He launched into a short commentary about the first day of school. Hermione found herself zoning out while trying to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"The best part was meeting my fellow teachers. I'm grateful for this opportunity to teach."

That last sentence was the final straw. Hermione held up a hand, halting Malfoy's further speech. He looked at her in confusion then embarassment as he realized that he had been dominating the conversation without any input from her.

The alarm sounded then, alerting passengers of the upcoming train. Hermione turned around without saying goodbye and queued up for the train. She felt Malfoy following her silently.

When the train doors opened up, she quickly entered and found a seat. She placed her bag beside her to prevent anyone from sitting next to her. Brown shoes stopped before her downcast eyes but she didn't look up. The brown shoes moved away from her.

-

_What a day!_ Hermione mused to herself. She tried to cheer herself up by reviewing her lesson plans. When she was finished with that, she turned to the school manual. As she was looking at the pictures of the school's founders, she read something which made her pause.

**H. Ogwarts Institute was founded by influential businessmen Arcturus Black and Cygnus Malfoy.**

MALFOY!

She checked the dates of the school's establishment and deduced that Cygnus Malfoy must be an ancestor of Draco Malfoy. Hermione sneered at the thought of such blatant nepotism. 

Then she cringed at her reaction to him at the train station. She had snubbed him. What if, with just a few words to his connection in the Board of Directors, all her chances for tenure would disappear?

Hermione vowed that night as she went to sleep that she would hide her negative feelings for Malfoy.

-

Hermione didn't see Malfoy the next day until she was standing at the platform waiting for the train home. She took a deep breath and steeled herself to talk to him.

"Excuse me, Mr. Malfoy. I would like to apologize for being rude yesterday. I was not having a great day and I'm sorry that I was short with you."

Malfoy's impassive face broke into a slight smile.

"It's alright, Miss Granger. I accept your apology."

Hermione noticed the sincerity in his eyes and asked herself how someone she hated could be such an attractive person. Because he was attractive; she had cataloged his attributes while reading his teacher profile at the school's website. It was not fair, she told herself as she listed the reasons why Malfoy's existence was a bane to her own.

A hand waved in front of her and she found herself blinking into focus at Malfoy's concerned face.

"Our train is here,"he gestured.

Hermione nodded and turned to queue up. She found a seat and Malfoy took the empty seat beside her. She waited for him to begin talking about his day but he was silent. She didn't make a move to fill the silence between them. When it was time for them to part she told him good day and didn't wait for his response.

She didn't know then that it was the beginning a ritual she would share with Malfoy for the whole school year.

-

The next day, Hermione was walking out of H. Ogwarts when she felt someone following her. She turned around and came face to face with Malfoy. He smiled uncertainly. She answered with a nod then continued her trek to the station.

Once again, she found herself sitting beside Malfoy. He took out a book and began to read. Malfoy noticed her looking at him and showed her the title of the book. It was a compilation of journal articles on education.

"Do you want to take a look?",he held out the book.

Hermione shook her head.

"Reading on the train makes me dizzy."

"Oh."

She gave a grim smile then turned her gaze to the view outside. Malfoy continued to look at her before going back to his book.

-

A few days later, Hermione noticed a small packet on her desk. A note from Malfoy was inside along with a CD.

**"This contains audiobooks of what I was reading the other day. In case you change your mind" - Malfoy**

When they later met on the train station, Hermione braced herself for a conversation. She did not want to be beholden to him. But she did want to be polite. For professionalism's sake.

"I received your packet. I haven't listened to it in case you were wondering..."

He silently waited for her to go on. An open look on his face.

"I will listen to it later at home".

Malfoy smiled in appreciation.

-

When Hermione pressed play, she was shocked to hear Malfoy's smooth voice reading to her. There was something in his voice which prevented the article from being boring; it resonated in her home and she admitted to herself that it was not unwelcome.

Hermione listened to the audiobooks on the train ride to school. It was interesting and informative. Malfoy had picked articles that were thought provoking and practical.

-

Malfoy continued to accompany her on the train. One particularly busy school week, something happened.

Hermione had been on edge for the past few days. Her evaluation was scheduled for the next day and she was constantly reviewing her actions.

She had not been sleeping well and relied on caffeine to energize her for school. On the trip home on Thursday, her body gave up. She was so tired.

Hermione forced her eyes to remain open while waiting for the train. She was swaying on her feet. She didn't even notice Malfoy walking up to her.

She had a vague sense that something was wrong when her eyesight started to dim and pixelize like the static that played on the television at late hours. Hermione tried to reach out and found the world suddenly tilting, the ground rising and then everything went black.

-

_"Miss Granger!"_

_"Miss Granger!"_

_"Hermione!"_

Someone was calling her from far away. It was as if she were underwater. But how could that be when she was too inland to be at sea?

Gradually, she became aware of a touch on her face and a sure grip on her hand. She awoke to find a worried Malfoy leaning over her. She looked around and noticed that she was in an office.

Malfoy helped her sit up and then he gave her a glass of water and held out a bar of chocolate from his pocket. Obligingly, Hermione ate and drank until the dizzy feeling went away.

A train manager entered the office and looked her over. He seemed satisfied with the return of color to her face then said,"You gave us quite a scare, miss."

Faintly, Malfoy mumbled his assent.

"Our train?"

"Has left already. But they have assured me that we can take the next trip whenever we're ready."

On the trip home, Malfoy let her sleep on his shoulder.

-

Mid-finals were approaching. Malfoy invited her to look over his prepared tests and offer some suggestions. He gave her a flash drive with the contained his materials.

"I trust your judgment, Miss Granger."

Normally, Hermione would have balked at receiving a task which she deemed secretarial. But she wanted to know how his mind worked; how he formulated his evaluation material. So she accepted his request.

That night, she plugged in the flash drive and started going over his files. Hermione admired his meticulousness and clear-thinking. But she had a problem with some non-standardized portions of his test. She listed down her comments to be given the next day. To which, Malfoy smiled and thanked her.

-

"Miss Granger, I would like to broach a request to you."

Hermione adjusted her gaze from the countryside to Malfoy beside her. With a tilt of her head, she encouraged him to continue.

"A student would like to take the mid-finals exams he missed. He was worried about his marks and I assured him that I would talk to you about it. I would have gone to the principal to ask for permission but I felt that I should ask you first."

Hermione frowned.

"Does he have a medical permit for his absence?"

"I believe he does not."

"Then I will have to disagree to a removal exam."

"But--"

"Rules are rules, Mr. Malfoy. I must follow them."

Malfoy was struck speechless. Then--

"You, of all people, should know that education matters more than the rules!"

"I resent that!"

"You shouldn't. It was a compliment."

Malfoy got up and took a seat away from her.

-

Hermione did not see Malfoy the next few days.

It was on the fifth day that she received an email from him. He asked her to teach his classes for him. He had been called home and would return in two weeks time. His email was to the point and had no mention of their previous conversation on the train.

Hermione was unable to understand the riot of feelings inside her. She admired his professionalism, resented his seeming obliviousness to the fact that they had an unresolved argument, was curious about the emergency, and overall confused about what she felt for him.

It was no longer a hidden resentment. She found that she missed his conversation and presence on the train. His practical nature and love of education.

She missed him.

-

Malfoy returned in less than two weeks. She was not expecting him to sit beside her and so was surprised when familiar brown shoes walked up to her and asked if the seat next to her was taken.

She looked up and smiled.

"How are you?",she asked him quietly.

"Excited to be teaching again. My cousin's husband returned early from his conference and released me from my familial duty. It's not really a duty-," Malfoy broke off in a nervous laugh.

Hermione reached out and touched his hand causing him to stop laughing. She was interested to learn more about him and he noticed it.

"My cousin, Andromeda, was hospitalized recently. She was nearing full-term and experienced labor pains earlier than expected. She lives in the country with her husband and son but her husband was away the past month. She asked me to take care of my nephew and I agreed."

"I wish you could meet her. She's like you, in a way."

He curled his fingers around hers. A sure grip.

"Brilliant and impetuous."

"Is that how you see me, Mr. Malfoy?"

"A bit more than that, I suppose. I see you as my best friend, Miss Granger."

Hermione felt that honesty demanded honesty in return. So with a deep breath--

"I hated your guts when you appeared that first day of classes. I resented you. I was irritated by your friendly manner. I told myself to hide my negative feelings for you. But it was all for naught because you were relentless. You weaseled your way into my brain by giving me those audiobooks. How could you know that I love books in all forms? And your voice! It was soothing but not boring. I was comfortable with you sitting beside me all those long hours on the train in silence and when we talked. I didn't know then that you were becoming my friend. Perhaps even my best friend--"

She stopped to take a breath.

Malfoy was holding her face in his hands. His thumbs brushing the tears off her cheeks.

"Shh, Hermione. What brought on this revelation?"

Hermione smiled while fresh tears fell.

"I didn't want my last conversation with you to be our argument. I didn't want you to think negatively of me."

"I'd never do that. I know you and I respect your opinion. We might not see eye-to-eye on some points but that is alright and I understand."

Malfoy shushed her until she quietly laid her head on his shoulder.

With clasped hands they waited for the train ride to end sure in the knowledge that a new path had opened for them both. One that they would traverse hand in hand.


End file.
